I, first, heard these words in my school days as a student of 8th grade. And the only reason I'd even paid heed to them was that they were said by a certain, cute looking ex. student!

She had returned to school to meet the teachers, and when she decided to pop by our class, we were all very happy because that meant our teacher's precious lecture being wasted as they chit-chatted about their current lives. Typically, our teacher then introduced her student -as the scholar she was- and asked her to give us a 'little' inspirational speech.

We braced ourselves for a long, drawn out sermon of perseverance, dedication, focus, hardwork blah blah blah, but pleasantly enough she did keep it simple. She quoted her father saying, "Beta, bass kuch saal mehnat kar lo! Phir, life set ho jayegi"

At that time as star struck as I was, her words felt like a breeze on a hot sunny day. There she was, seemingly on her path to success, and all she had to say was this. Just a few years. And I said to myself, "Hey! I can do that. Why not?". Not that it really changed anything, because I doubt I worked any harder for the rest of my school years, but at the back of my head, I never forgot those words. They were like my light at the end of that horrible tunnel called school. I really believed, that this would be all. Ace school, and life set ho jaayegi.

But, I was not content and had to find for myself the deepest pit of quicksand to jump right into, and hence chose to pursue engineering which of course, starts with two years of studying for the Common Entrance Test. Two, ARDUOUS years of CET. And that's when, I started hearing those words again. Work hard these two years, get admitted in a reputed college, and your life is set. Fair enough, I thought to myself again. I could do this too. After that, all I had to do was get through the 4 year course with minimum (or none) KTs, and preferably a first class average. That didn't sound too hard, and now I can say that it isn't hard for sure.

However, does this really mean my life is now set, as they say? NO WAY! FAR from it!

Enter, MS/MBA. Same words again. Work hard now, get into a good University/B-school, get a job giving a fat paycheck and then....you know what follows by now. At this point, I really started having my doubts. Twice I had fallen for those words only to be disappointed. Twice off which now begs the question, when will this end? When can one say he's worked hard enough, and for long enough, to now reap the fruits of what he's achieved, in peace? Retirement, maybe? Sadly enough, the answer to them all is - NEVER.

Life is not about rest. There's a reason we don't greet newborns with chants of 'Rest In Peace' after all. No matter how much you've done, there will always be something left for you. Life really is a journey. Where you want to take it, and how far, is all in your hands. You spend your youth building a vehicle - your knowledge - and learning how to drive. Then you start your journey, in the direction of your choice. There will be roadblocks, but you needn't stop. You can take a detour, or blast your way through if your vehicle is strong enough. And the successes are just like an endless list of drive-through restaurants, each one fancier than the last. You collect your meal, after having already paid for it through blood sweat and tears, and then you're back on the road. You could speed away, paying little attention to what you've got now, in hopes of getting something far grander in the future, or you could wait off the road a bit, enjoying each meal as it came. You may not get the farthest, but you'd have relished every little thing that came your way at least. It is all your choice.

As it turns out, that the girl from school was wrong. Life doesn't allow you to relax much. That makes me sad. But I forgive her. Hell, I'd forgive her anything! She was far too cute not to!

Image Credits: www.urban-yogi.co/hard-work